I'll Stay By Your Side
by JaminJazzi
Summary: "Just because someone understands, Rin, doesn't mean they're going to forgive you." Sora had gotten used to her simple life. She was moving on, but when a familiar red head waltzed back into her life she began to question herself. Rin didn't care that he threw her into a sea filled with emotions. Follow Sora and Rin through the process of them rebuilding their broken friendship.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

_You should come see him! _

_He always asks about you…_

_He really misses you…even if he won't admit it…_

_Please come…_

_I know you miss him too. _

As I stuffed my phone into my bag a sigh escaped my lips. I refused to go see him at all. Even after hearing about all of his success last year during the prefecturals and his stupid decision during regionals.

I smiled to myself.

He finally let his friends in again. That barrier that he had put up had finally come tumbling down and it was definitely worth being disqualified for. Even so, I still refused to see him.

"Sora!" I turned around at the sound of my name to see my best friend, Shin, running towards me. I stopped in my tracks and waited for her to catch up to me. As she bent in front of me and placed her hands on her knees she began to catch her breath.

"I think you need to work on your cardio." I pointed out the blatantly obvious fact about Shin. She stood up straight and stuck her tongue out at me.

"Haha very funny. Not all of us can be in great shape like you." I shrugged my shoulders and turned on my heel.

"It wouldn't kill you to go for a run every once in a while."

"Do you remember the last time I went for a run with you? I nearly died and you were going to leave me!" She over exaggerated the first time she stepped out of her house for a light jog around the neighbourhood.

"One, you didn't 'almost' die because you were fine and two, I wasn't going to leave you. You needed water, so I was going to grab you some."

"Excuses, excuses." She was cut off by my phone making its usual _bing_ sound whenever I received a text. I fished my phone out of my bag and immediately regretted it afterwards.

_Will you stop ignoring me?!_

With a groan I placed my phone back in my bag. I felt Shin's soft green eyes staring at me, so I looked at her through the corner of mine and sighed.

"What?"

"Is it Gou again?"

"Who else would it be?"

"Maybe you should go and see him." I waved my hand at the idea.

"No. He's not worth my time." Shin immediately dropped the touchy subject as we continued walking home. Instead, she just discussed the latest gossip she had heard around school.

* * *

It had been so long since I last stepped near a swimming competition, so watching a friendly competition that was open to the public was a good start. As I walked into the large room I saw Gou talking to her swim team. A part of me wanted to go over and see her, but I knew that wouldn't be wise.

I walked along the aisles until I found a suitable spot for myself. I sat in the front because I wanted to see, but off to the side because I didn't want to be noticed. I watched as swimmers of all ages swam against one another in the pool.

I started to lose interest until I saw a familiar scarlet haired boy man walk out. He peeled off his Samezuka Academy jacket and placed it in the bin beside him as he stretched out his legs. Beside him was the infamous Haruka that continued to push Rin. The man that I silently thanked because he helped Rin through his troubles and to push him to be a better swimmer.

"Ready." They stepped onto the starting block and positioned themselves accordingly. When the whistle blew the two jumped into the pool and left the other swimmers behind.

I watched in amazement as Rin pulled in front of Haru with such ease. When he made the turn I almost believed that he had this race in the bag, but Haru surprised me when he made a remarkable recovery and managed to catch up to Rin. As my grip on the railing tightened out of nerves the two hit the wall at the exact same time.

When they both took off their caps and goggles I saw as Rin raise a hand for Haru. As the two exchanged a high five and smiles I shook my head and kissed my teeth. I had had enough of him and his smiles, so I stood up form my seat and left the building, but I couldn't help but feel someone's eyes bearing into my back.

* * *

My eyes lingered on the ceiling as I laid in bed. His smile haunted me ever since I got back from that competition and I cursed myself for ever going. I rolled over and looked at the picture that was in its light brown frame on my bedside table.

My arms were wrapped around his neck as my legs wrapped around his torso. He placed his hands on the back of my thighs, so I wouldn't slip off. My chin rested on his shoulder and you could see that the camera had caught us laughing together. His sharp teeth were visibly seen as he faced me and I faced him.

_"__I could care less about him, Shin."_

_"__Why're you lying to yourself?"_

_"__I'm not."_

_"__Then how come you still have that photo of the two of you on your bedside table?"_

"Damn it." I cursed under my breath as I turned around and managed to get comfortable, so I could fall asleep at last.

* * *

**So...what do we all think about the first chapter? Leave me a review or a PM! :D**

**-xoxo JaminJazzi**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

_I know you went yesterday! _

_I saw you there!_

_Will you stop ignoring me?!_

"So you went yesterday, didn't you?" I looked up from my lunch to see Shin standing in front of me. I took another bite of my rice as I looked away from her. She sat beside me up against our favourite tree. "We should talk about it."

"There's nothing to talk about."

"Yes there is and you know it, Sora." She paused for a few moments before saying lightly, "Can you look at me, please?" I gave in to her and turned to face her. Her features were soft as she spoke, "It would do you good to go see him. Maybe then you can finally move on from him."

"That's a bad idea."

"Why?"

"Because I might just punch him in the face." She let out a sigh as she closed her eyes and rested her head on the trunk of the tree.

"You're hopeless, you know that?" I placed some more rice in my mouth. "It doesn't take a genius to point out that you want to go see him."

"But I don't want to."

"Then why did you go to the competition yesterday?"

"Because I was curious."

"About?"

"His swimming. He wants to be in the Olympics, so I wanted to see if he's good enough."

"And what did you think?"

"…He's decent."

"Decent? He's the captain of the Samezuka Swim Team! He's more than decent!" She yelled at me.

"Whatever, I don't really care anyways."

* * *

My phone continued to ring on my bed as I worked on my homework. The constant ringing started to irritate me since it distracted me from studying. When I gave in to the peer pressure, that was my phone, I picked it up and answered the call.

"Hello?"

"Hello? Sora?"

"Gou?"

"The one and only! I'm so happy you picked up! You've been ignoring my texts."

"Because I don't want to see him." I sighed.

"Well you don't have to, but I do want you to do something for me."

"And that would be…"

"Come to the reopening of the Iwatobi Swim Club!"

"Why?"

"Because I want to see you! Is that too much to ask? Please come?" She begged on the other side of the phone. "You can even bring Kazuki because they have events for kids."

"When's this event?"

"Tonight…"

"And you're calling me now to tell me to come?" I yelled on the phone. My hand reached up and I pinched the bridge of my nose out of frustration. "Fine, I'll come. Kazuki can't come because he's going out with some of his friends, but I'll show up."

"Yes! Thank you, Sora-san!"

"Ya, Ya, whatever. I'll see you tonight." Once I hung up my phone I threw it back onto my bed and sat back down at my desk. I might as well finish whatever I could before I left to go see Gou.

* * *

"Sora-san!" Gou waved frantically at the entrance of the new swimming club. She pulled her scarlet hair back into a ponytail, but left her bangs out as usual. I waved back as I approached her.

"Long time no see, Gou." She quickly wrapped her arms around me in a tight hug and I returned it.

"I can't believe it's been so long! I've missed you so much!" I smiled at her and patted her shoulder.

"Well I'm here now, right?"

"Yes you are! Well how about you go inside and go find a spot to watch everything. I'm one of the judges for the muscle contest."

"There's a muscle contest?"

"Of course there is! Swimmers have amazing body's that need to be appreciated!" I giggled at her enthusiasm.

"You haven't changed a bit, Gou."

* * *

"I'm going to kill Gou." I mumbled as they mentioned the 2oo meter relay. They got the swim club from Iwatobi High School and Samezuka Academy to come in for the event and Rin was participating in the relay.

I couldn't leave now because there was a high chance that he would see me, but if I left right after the race then there would be a better chance of him not noticing that I was there. So I waited patiently for the race to begin and then finish. I was quite impressed with Rin's swimming and how he managed to close so much of the gap during his butterfly leg, but I was completely shocked when I saw Sousuke there.

However, as soon as Iwatobi High School one and the team members were busy talking to one another I used that as my cue to run out the door. As I pushed the front doors open I let out a breath that I didn't realize I was holding. I shoved my hands into my jacket pockets and began to walk away form the building, but I stopped when I heard someone say my name from behind me.

"Sora?"

* * *

**I'm sure we all know who that could be! Leave me some reviews on what you're thinking! :D**

**-xoxo JaminJazzi**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"Sora?" I stood like a statue in my spot. I couldn't move at all and I didn't know if I wanted to. "I know you can hear me. Sora, it's been so long." My hands balled into fists as I gritted my teeth.

"That wasn't my choice though."

"Let me explain." I spun on my heel to look at him for the first time in years. His scarlet hair was still cut the same as it was so many years ago. He had two stray strands on his face that crossed paths. His red eyes were staring at me as he tried to think of what to say. With his Samezuka Academy jacket over his still wet torso he looked like an older version on the boy I knew.

"I don't want to hear it."

"Sora-"

"No! You left me and you made that decision! So why don't you just leave me alone?" I yelled at him. I could see that he was taken back from my sudden outburst, but he knew it was justified.

"Then why are you here?" He questioned.

"To see Gou and to tell you that I never want to see you again." I stated before turning on my heel and stomping away from him. Rin didn't make any move towards me or to try and stop me from leaving and a part of me was grateful that he didn't and the other was upset that he didn't.

* * *

My bedroom door opened slightly as someone entered. They walked over to me on my bed and sat down at the edge. Their soft hand rested itself on my back and rubbed it slightly as I hugged onto my sheets.

"If you miss him that much, you should talk to him." The sound of my mother's voice whispered throughout the room.

"But I don't think I can." I mumbled up against my sheets.

"When you truly care about someone, you can always find a way to keep them in your heart." She leaned over and placed a soft kiss on the top of my head before leaving my room.

"But I don't want to get hurt again." I muttered as a single tear slid down my face.

* * *

"So how was going to Iwatobi's Swim Club reopening?"

"The fact that you know I went is extremely creepy." I mumbled as took another bite of my squid. Shin sat down beside me and flashed me a smile.

"You know that I know _everything_ that happens in this school."

"And I don't want to know how."

"So…how was it?" She nudged me with her elbow.

"It was fine. I saw Gou and watched kids compete against one another."

"That's it?"

"That's it." She raised her eyebrow as she stared at me. She knew that I wasn't telling her something and it didn't take her long to realize what it was.

"You saw him didn't you?" I looked away from her and stuffed more squid into my mouth. "Sora, did you talk to him?" My lack of a reply was the only answer she needed. "You did! What happened?"

"I thought you knew everything?" I retorted. As she gave me her disapproved look I sighed and filled her in on my late night adventure. "I saw him and told him that I never want to see him again."

"Why would you do that?" She yelled at me.

"You fully well know why!" I yelled back. She huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. Shin was a very empathetic person and I loved that about her, but when it came to me she showed it less. She knew that the only way to make me do things was to push me because my stubbornness was my worst enemy.

"And what if he never talks to you again?" As I looked away from Shin I could feel my features sag slightly. The thought of never talking to the scarlet haired boy ripped my heart into pieces, but I already haven't talked to him in years. But I always had a sliver of hope in my heart that one day we would speak again.

"Good. That's what I want." I whispered.

"Then why is it that you don't look like you believe your words?"

* * *

I sat at my desk and let my pen move on its own as I finished my homework. When the familiar sound of my ringtone rang in the room I reached for it without looking at answered the call.

"Hello?"

"Sora?" My pen stopped immediately at the familiar voice.

"Rin?"

"Please don-"Before he could finish his sentence I hung up my phone and threw it on my bed. He refused to respect my wishes and contacted me. My ringtone continued to play several times in my room. I groaned as I slammed my head on the desk.

An inner struggle waged on inside of me. A part of me wanted to pick up the phone and to talk to him, but another part of me wanted to throw my phone out my window and change my number. My body, however, reacted on its own and moved towards the bed and answered the phone.

"How did you get my number?"

"You answered!" He sounded relieved over the phone as I squinted my eyes and repeated my question,

"How did you get my number?"

"Gou."

"I'm going to kill her." I said through gritted teeth.

"Don't do that! The only reason why she gave it to me was because I had to, practically, get on my knees and beg for it." I wanted to chuckle at the thought of Rin on his knees begging for something, but I managed to swallow the laughter.

"What do you want?"

"To explain myself."

"No."

"What?" He sounded surprised by how fast I had replied to his idea.

"The fact that I'm even talking to you right now should make you happy."

"But you're not happy with me, so why should I be happy?"

"I don't want to hear your excuses."

"It's not an excuse."

"No."

"Sora."

"No."

"Come on."

"No."

"Please?" It was the way he said it. His voice sounded so desperate. He sounded like that was the only thing he could think of because there were no other words that could aid him in.

"Rin…"

"Let me explain, please? If you let me explain and you don't want to speak to me after that then I'll leave you alone." I contemplated for a few seconds and I could tell that he took his bottom lip in-between his teeth as he waited, nervously, for my answer.

"Fine."

"Really? Okay, well how about we meet up tomorrow? I'd rather see you in person and explain myself."

"That sounds fair."

"So I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Maybe."

* * *

**Now here's the big question! Will she go and see him or will she not? What do you guys think? Leave me a review! :D**

**-xoxo JaminJazzi**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

I don't recall a time where Rin wasn't a part of my life. His red locks were always in my vision and his sharp toothed smile was always shown. He kept me sane when I thought I wouldn't be anymore.

* * *

_"__Rin! Gou! Sosuke!" I yelled as I ran up to the trio walking down the street. They stopped and turned their heads to watch me run over to them and take my place in-between Sosuke and Rin. _

_"__You're late." Gou stated. _

_"__I know! I can't believe I am, but my alarm didn't go off, so I had to rush out of the house." I explained. _

_"__I'm surprised you caught up to us." Rin commented. _

_"__Ya, you're pretty slow." Sosuke added. The pair smiled at me as I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms over my chest. _

_"__I am not slow! I've been running more, so I've gotten faster." I defended myself. _

_"__Then I think we should have a race." Rin suggested. _

_"__Last one to the school gates buys lunch for the winners." Sosuke wagered. _

_"__On your marks." I started. _

_"__This doesn't sound like a good idea." Gou said in the background. _

_"__Get set."_

_"__Do you three always have to do this?"_

_"__Go!"_

_"__But I don't want to run!"_

* * *

_"__You got me new running shoes!" I yelled out of excitement as I looked at my new shoes. They were a simple white colour, but it was the thought that counted. Everyone else had bought me clothes or games, but all I really wanted were new shoes to run in. _

_"__Well I knew your ones now were getting worn out." I wrapped my arms around Rin's neck and pulled him into a tight hug. _

_"__Thank you so much! This is exactly what I wanted!" As he wrapped his arms around me and hugged me back I leaned backwards and smiled at him. _

_"__So you like them?" He asked. _

_"__I love them!"_

* * *

_"__You're leaving?" As I sat in front of my best friend I felt my heart break slightly. We promised to be together until the very end and to never leave each other's sides. _

_"__I really want to swim with these guys in a relay. You'll still see me around." The red head smiled at me as he placed his hand on mine and gave it a soft pat. _

_"__You promise?" He smiled at me and allowed his hand to wrap itself around mine. He knew that I could never stay mad at him for long. He was one of my soft spots. _

_"__I promise."_

* * *

_"__Here."_

_"__What's this?" He took the chain from me and held the pendant in his hand. His red eyes scanned over the one simple word engraved on the small circular pendant. _

_"__Swim, Rin. Swim like you've never swam before and accomplish your dream." He stood in front of me with a stunned face. For once in his life he was at a loss for words. I watched as his fingers undid the clasp, so he could put the necklace on. _

_"__I'll swim, Sora. I'll make you proud." With a look of determination in his eyes he gave me one final hug before I let my best friend leave to go to another continent. Before he left me to go chase after his dream._

* * *

_It had been three weeks since the last time Rin had sent me a letter. Every week I continued to send him letters. On the exact same day, at the exact same time, I would go and drop off my letter to the postman, so it would make its way to Rin. But Rin never sent me one back. _

_I never felt so alone than at that very moment. It was my birthday and he didn't send me a card. There was no phone call. No picture. There was nothing. Everyone around me continued to smile and laugh and give me gifts, but all I wanted to do was talk to Rin. _

_The boy that never asked what I wanted for my birthday because he always knew. The boy that would make me laugh even when I would sob in front of him over my own petty problems. The boy who always pushed me to do better in my school work and my running. The boy who took my heart all the way to Australia without my permission. _

_That boy left me here – alone._

* * *

Maybe it was the fact that he was my best friend? Maybe it was the fact that he knew me better than anyone else? Maybe it was because he was my soft spot? But I knew for certain that I wanted to see him as much as I didn't. Every fibre of me craved for him to be near me and for me to hug him and to have races again.

Maybe that was the reason why I was allowing myself to see him again?

As I played with the pendant he sent me from Australia I continued to look at the picture of the two of us beside my bed. _Run_ is what he engraved on my pendant and I did. I always ran.

Maybe it was because I wanted him back in my life because he was a part of me?

* * *

**I thought we would focus a little more on Sora as a person since some of you have been wondering why she's so willing to go see him and stuff. i hope this clears a few things up! **

**You know what to do! Leave me a review :D**

**-xoxo JaminJazzi**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

"Why are you so happy?" Shin asked me as we walked down the hallway to our next class.

"What do you mean?" I wasn't overly happy or giddy, so I didn't know what she was talking about.

"You haven't complained about Hikaru once yet and you always complain about him after class."

"I wasn't paying attention." I stated. I wasn't lying because I actually wasn't paying attention in class at all. Ever since I decided to meet Rin last night my whole brain could only think of him and what he would say. I was also debating on if I'd forgive him or not afterwards.

"Something on your mind?"

"Not really." I lied as we got to the door of our classroom.

"Well, you'd tell me if it was something serious, right?" She turned to me and placed her hands on her hips. I smiled at her and nodded my head.

"Of course! It's just school work."

"Don't even get me started on homework! The stuff Mr. Shiro gave us yesterday was completely ridiculous!" And off Shin's mouth went as she complained about our homework and the amount we had received from one specific teacher.

* * *

As I threw my fifth shirt into a pile I groaned out of frustration. I couldn't figure out what shirt to wear. I had finally decided on just wearing jeans to go see Rin, but it was the shirt that was throwing me off. Did I want to wear a blouse or a regular t-shirt?

But as I paused for a second I realized that I was fussing over my outfit for a guy that I wanted to punch in the face. Why? I sat down on my bed and held my face in my hands. As my fist collided with my bed sheets I groaned out of frustration.

Rin made me so frustrated! I hated him and wanted to throw him out a window every time I thought of him. He had hurt me so much and I didn't want to forgive him. I didn't want to let him back into my life! But when he called me the night before he made my heart race in my chest without me even realizing it. The familiar feeling of butterflies in the pit of my stomach swirled at the thought of sitting across from him and having a conversation.

So with a sigh I picked the first top I saw and threw it on. No matter how much I hated him, I didn't want to miss my train to see him. Punctual people are not late.

* * *

"Gou?" I answered my phone as I waited for my train to come.

"Sora! I heard you talked to Rin last night." She said smugly over the phone.

"All thanks to a certain 'someone' who gave him my number." I growled over the over.

"Those are just minor details! So…how was it?"

"Fine."

"What happened?"

"Nothing."

"Tell me what happened!" She whined.

"Why don't you ask your brother?" I sighed.

"Because he said the same thing and I know something good must have happened!"

"Why do you say that?"

"Because he actually smiled when I asked him about you instead of frowning like he normally does." She explained.

"Well I'm not going to say anything and he's not going to say anything, so it looks like you're never going to know." I teased her.

"That's not fair!" She groaned.

"Goodbye, Gou."

"Don't do this to me!"

"Goodnight!" I hung up my phone and placed it in my bag as the train arrived. I was ready to see Rin and to kick his ass.

* * *

_I really wish that I didn't have to do this, but Gou dragged me out and I can't seem to get away. Can we reschedule?_

I continued to reread the text over and over again. I had already arrived at the coffee shop when Rin decided to text me. Since I was thoroughly convinced that meeting me wasn't that important I decided that a little retail therapy wouldn't hurt.

As I wandered around the nearby mall I couldn't spot anything that looked remotely decent. I sighed as I stuck my hands in my pockets and continued to walk around the mall and into random stores.

I walked into a nearby store because I saw a top that looked kind of cute in the window. As I fished around the racks of clothing I heard a girly high-pitched laugh and a deeper one. I thought nothing of it until I saw who it belonged to. Rin laughed as he smiled at a girl with light brown hair. Her hair was tied up into a bun and she wore the same uniform as the Iwatobi High School.

I didn't see Gou anywhere nearby. As my fingers clenched around the top in my hand I threw it back onto the rack before storming out of the store. I wasn't going to let Rin get away with this. Not this time.

* * *

**Here's the next chapter! And for all of you who read my first Haru story...the first chapter of the sequel will be out on October 1st and it will be updated every wednesday after that! So get pumped! **

**Leave me a review or send me a PM on how excited you are! :D**

**-xoxo JaminJazzi**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

_Samezuka Academy_

* * *

_"__Where's your brother?"_

_"__Probably in the gym, why?"_

* * *

I gritted my teeth as I stomped into the school grounds. After I contemplated what to do about Rin I had decided that I was going to surprise him and tell him to never try and contact me ever again because I was done. I had completely lost all hope in him and he was about to find out.

I pushed open the doors and men of all sizes turned to face me. As I walked into the disgusting smelling gym I quickly scanned my surroundings. The murmurs of the students filled the air as I looked for my prey. The familiar red head was lying on his back as he did bench presses. Some guys stopped what they were doing to watch me storm by them and others didn't give me the time of day, but it was Rin I was after.

"You lying piece of shit." I said through gritted teeth as I reached him. Rin looked in my direction and his eyes almost turned into the size of dinner plates as he saw me standing there.

"Sora!" He scrambled to place the weight back on the bar and stood up from the bench. "What're you doing-"

"Save it! I don't want to talk to you ever again, got it? It was hard enough for me to even come out here and meet you and for you to blow me off for some girl is absolutely ridiculous!"

"I was with Gou-"

"I saw you, Rin. I saw you with that brunette and last time I checked, Gou was not a brunette, so save your pathetic excuses." I poked my index finger into his hard chest as I glared up at him. "Never contact me again." I spat in his face before turning on my heel and storming out of the gym.

"Sora!" Rin yelled my name as I heard him running behind me. I ignored him and continued to walk forward. I wasn't planning on giving him any more chances. When he managed to catch up to me he stood in front of me and grabbed hold of my shoulders. "Sora, wait." I pushed his hands away from me and glared at him once again.

"No! I'm done waiting, Rin! I'm clearly not that important to you, so you can go back and call your girlfriend or whatever!" I yelled.

"You got it all wrong!" He yelled at me.

"How? I fully well saw you!"

"Gou was in the change room!" My mind began to work overtime as I thought of what he had just said. It was very plausible that Gou was in the change room at the time, but did I want to believe him? Should I believe him? "The girl you saw me with was her friend, Hana. Gou dragged me along with her and her friend to go shopping and I couldn't get out of it."

"Why didn't you tell her you were meeting me?"

"Why didn't you tell her?" He shot back.

"How did you-"

"She called me right afterwards and complained on how we were both being so secretive." He shrugged at the memory of his younger sister pestering him over the phone. As I stood in front of him I began to feel my cheeks warm up as the awkward moment set itself upon us. I began to roll back and forth on my heels as my fingers began to play with each other.

"Rin, I...I don't know what to say." I quietly said as I avoided his gaze.

"A 'sorry' would be a good way to start." I looked at him and saw the smug look on his face.

"Don't push it. I'm still royally pissed at you." I huffed as I crossed my arms over my chest and looked away. Rin's harmonious laugh echoed in the night air as I gave him a quizzical look.

"You haven't changed one bit." He commented on my stubbornness.

"I don't know if that's a compliment or an insult."

"A compliment, but how about we have that talk now?" I stared at him with shock at his offer.

"Now? Where?" As he thought for a few seconds you could almost imagine a light bulb going off inside his head as he came up with the solution.

"I know the perfect place."

* * *

With the water up to my ankles I felt my eyes close and my mind go blank. My shoulders slumped as the tension that built up in them released into the familiar water. When I opened my eyes I saw how pretty the indoor pool looked with no lights on and just the moonlight hitting the pool water.

"How have you been?" Rin asked me. I looked to my right and saw him staring at the water as his feet lightly kicked the liquid.

"I've been better." I admitted to him and to myself for the first time.

"I'm sorry."

"I thought you were going to explain everything to me." Rin looked at me with a serious face – his eyebrows knitted together, his jawline slightly clenched and the smallest crease in his forehead.

"I hit a wall in Australia." I stayed silent and just continued to watch him as his features changed from serious to soft. He looked away from me and looked back at the water. "That was around the same time that I stopped sending you mail. I talked so much about becoming a Olympic swimmer and I didn't know what to say to you when I thought about giving it all up."

"You were going to stop swimming?" He slightly nodded his head as he took in a deep breath and exhaled.

"When I came back I didn't want to see you. You would've been ashamed to see me when I got back. I yelled at everyone close to me, I cut off Gou from my life, I didn't join the swim team, and I just gave up on everything."

"And what about now?"

"You see, after I had given up and decided I wasn't going to try again I ran into Haru and his friends. I just wanted to beat him so badly because I thought that if I did then it would all be different. I would be able to swim properly again and I would be able to become a Olympic swimmer again."

"But…"

"But that didn't work. Yea, I beat Haru in a race and I was so excited. I just wanted to yell from the rooftops and scream at the top of my lungs, but it didn't change anything. I didn't change."

"So what made you change?"

"Haru and his friends. I'm sure you heard about me swimming with them in the relay medley last year during Regionals."

"I did, it was the stupidest thing you have ever done." I commented.

"Yea, it was pretty reckless of me, but after that race I was able to swim again. Sora, Haru showed me something that day when we swam together and it honestly felt like magic in that pool." He turned to face me and he smiled. "It was only after that that I realized that I could finally face you."

"But why didn't you just tell me about everything before hand? I thought you could trust me with these kinds of things?" I questioned his actions.

"I can, but I think that I was…embarrassed to say the least. I only ever talked about my dream that when I thought it wasn't going to happen…I didn't want to face you."

"Because you knew that I was going to kick your ass?" I joked.

"Because I knew you'd be disappointed." I stayed silent as I examined his face. He almost looked hurt inside and I wanted to hug him and tell him that it would all be alright, but I stopped myself from reaching out and touching his soft skin with my bare hand. "I knew that you wouldn't approve of my decision."

"Because I know you can do better than give up." I told him.

"I know and that's why I didn't want to see you. I promised myself that I wouldn't let you see me like that because you didn't deserve it."

"So instead, you hid all this from me, instead of letting me help and then when you were pleased with yourself you finally got in contact with me." I summarized his past few years, so he could hear it from my point of view.

"Well when you say it like that of course it's going to sound bad!" His voice rose as he gripped onto the side of the pool.

"I didn't say it like that to make it sound bad." I shook my head as he misunderstood why I restated everything. "That's just how I see it, Rin." My voice was so soft that I was surprised that he heard me at all.

"And what do you think?" As my orbs stared into his red velvet coloured ones I almost felt myself giving in to him. His eyes begged for forgiveness and for me to return, but as much as I wanted to my head continued to sway my hearts decisions.

"It's a lot to take in." I whispered.

"But you understand now, right?"

"I do."

"So…we can…try again?"

"No." Such a small word was said so lightly, but you could see how big of an impact it had when his eyes went large and jaw clenched.

"But you said-"

"Just because someone understands, Rin, doesn't mean they're going to forgive you." I moved backwards and stood up on the side of the pool. I grabbed the spare towel Rin had brought out for us beforehand and quickly dried my feet before slipping them back into my shoes.

"Sora." I looked over my shoulder and saw Rin standing by the side of the pool. The light from the moon illuminated the right side of his face in such a delicate manner. "Can we meet again?"

"I need time, Rin. Give me some time." As I looked forward and began to leave the indoor pool I almost stopped in my tracks because I could have sworn I heard the slightest whisper from Rin saying,

"Thank you."

* * *

**And here's some truthful words! WHO'S EXCITED FOR THE HARU SEQUEL THAT'S COMING OUT WEDNESDAY?! I am! Anyways, leave me a review or send me a PM! :D**

**-xoxo JaminJazzi**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

"So the world is going to end!" Shin yelled dramatically as she sat down beside me. The passing students all gave us curious looks as they heard her yell about the end of the world.

"Did you lose your phone in your room again?" I sighed as I took another bite of my apple.

"No! But I do know that you went somewhere and I don't know who with or why or where you went and this is the first time this has happened and I think I'm about to pass out!" Her words came flying out of her mouth so fast that I thought they were going to give me whiplash.

"Calm down. How did you even know I wasn't home last night?" I questioned my best friends creepy knowledge of everyone's whereabouts.

"I called your cell last night and you didn't answer, so I called your house and your mom said you went out to go meet up with a friend."

"Why were you calling me?"

"Because I wanted to know what you got for question five on the math homework last night because I'm pretty sure I got it wrong." She explained. "But don't try to change the subject! So where did you go?"

"No where." I avoided her gaze as I turned my head. I knew that she was squinting her eyes towards me as the gears in her brain began to complete her equation about where I was last night.

"You were with Rin." As my head snapped towards her direction I felt my eyes turn into the size of dinner plates.

"Why would you say that?"

"Because you don't hide anything from me and the only thing that makes you awkward is Rin, so it has to be him." My brain didn't work fast enough to make up an excuse, so she continued to say, "So what happened? Did you guys sort everything out?"

"Well he explained himself."

"And?" I sighed as I looked down at my lunch. I was up half the night trying to figure out how I felt about his explanation. There were no words to describe my feelings, but I had to string a sentence together.

"And I felt like he doesn't trust me anymore." I placed my lunch to the side and brought my knees to my chest. "He wanted to change before he saw me and, yea others would be over the moon to have someone do that for them, but I'm not. I thought we were so close that he would let me help him."

"But he did it for you." Shin whispered.

"I know." I did know that he did it for me. He was ashamed of what he had done and what had happened and he wanted to change for me. I was his reason. "But I want to help him through everything. I don't want to be someone he only has when the good times come. I want to help him through the bad too." As my legs dropped back onto the grass and my head rested on the tree I groaned. "Who told him it was okay for him to cut me out when he feels like it?"

"Love is a funny thing." Shin giggled beside me. As my head snapped in her direction she laughed.

"What?"

"Oh nothing!"

"Love has nothing to do with this!"

"Of course it doesn't, Sora!" She laughed.

* * *

"You won't believe who just called!" My mom excitedly yelled as she ran into my room. I looked up at her with a confused face as she sat down on my bed. "It was Rin! Why don't you look excited?" I stared at her with a blank expression as my insides began to turn themselves inside out.

"What did he say?"

"He wanted to see how everyone was and he apologized for losing contact with us. I thought you'd be pleased that he called! This shows initiative." I had no words at that moment. The only thing I could think about was the fact that Rin disobeyed what I had asked him and to not contact me. He knew that my family was also off limits.

"I'm going to Shin's tonight to do some homework." I stated as I stood up from my chair.

"Oh? You didn't tell me." My mom said.

"She only just texted me before you barged into my room, so I guess I'll see you when I get back." I walked over to my mom and placed a soft peck on her cheek as I grabbed the jacket that was on the back of my chair and left.

* * *

I stuffed my hands into my jacket pocket as I walked past the gate and towards the pool. As I chewed on my bottom lip I tried to calm myself down. It was a dream to think that Rin would actually listen to me for once in his life, but he never has and he never will. He was always so spontaneous and carefree and it could be so annoying at times!

As I pushed open the door to the pool I was about to call over the familiar red head, but I stopped in my tracks as I noticed that it was only him and another guy in the pool. Rin instructed the learner on how to do a front stroke.

"Sora?" I shook my head to remember why I was there and saw Rin and the other boy looking at me. The other individual looked oddly familiar, but I couldn't remember where I had seen him before.

"I have a bone to pick with you." I spat at Rin.

"Rei, why don't you take a five minute break or something?" Rin sighed. As the boy named Rei made his way out of the pool Rin followed after him. He picked up the towel and began to dry himself off as he walked towards me. "What did I do now?"

"Why did you call my house?"

"Because I wanted to apologize to your family."

"I told you to not call me."

"But I wasn't calling you, I was calling your family." His cocky smile crossed his lips as he looked at me. I knew he was right and he knew he was right and he wasn't going to back down.

"What're you doing anyways? Teaching him how to swim?" I scoffed as I avoided eye contact with the red head.

"What's it to you?" He crossed his arms over his broad chest and continued to smirk in my direction. I rolled my eyes and allowed my shoulders to relax slightly.

"I was just curious. I'd be surprised if you did something so nice."

"Well since you're so interested…I am teaching him how to swim. He can only swim butterfly though, so I'm helping him learn backstroke right now."

"He can only do butterfly?" I had never heard of someone who could only do one stroke before.

"Yup, he wants to surprise his Haru, Makoto, and Nagisa with it."

"That's where I've seen him before." I mumbled to myself as I had finally learned where I had seen him. He must have competed in the relay at Iwatobi Swimming Club.

"Um…Rin-senpai, is it safe for me to come out?" The voice belonging to Rei entered the room as he awkwardly stood a few feet from us.

"Sure, hey Sora?"

"Hm?"

"We'll talk later, okay?" Before I said anything Rin went off to the pool and dove right into the liquid it held. I stayed a few more minutes and watched as Rin tried to teach Rei how to do a backstroke and I sighed out of frustration. I began to take off my shirt and pants before I heard someone start yelling at me. "What do you think you're doing? This isn't a strip club!"

"Calm down, Rin. I was going to help you teach this kid how to swim."

"In your underwear?" His voice practically cracked at the awkward topic.

"Well I did bring my bathing suit because I knew that I was coming here."

"So you were planning on swimming with me?" His cocky smile returned as he looked at me.

"Just continue your lame lesson while I change and I'll teach him how to properly swim." I huffed as I turned on my heel and began to follow the signs towards the change rooms.

* * *

**Okay so...I have decided that you guys will get a weekly update with this story every Monday...I think...BUT you need to leave me 2 reviews! Like come on guys...please! **

**-xoxo JaminJazzi**


	8. Chapter 8

"Thanks for staying." Rin placed his towel around the back of his neck as he walked towards me. I had just walked out of the change room with my clothes on again.

"I stayed to help Rei." I stated as I threw my bag on my shoulder.

"Well his swimming has improved. I think he'll be ready to show his teammates next week." He told me.

"I'm still surprised you're helping him." Rin didn't say anything. As he stared at me with an eyebrow raised – I sighed and avoided his gaze. "It's nice of you, Rin." I mumbled.

"I'm a pretty nice guy." He boasted to himself as I huffed and crossed my arms over my chest.

"Oh, Rin." I turned to look at him as I remembered something that was going through my mind the other night. "I have a question."

"What is it?" As I opened up my mouth I was stopped by someone saying my name behind me.

"Sora?" I turned around on my heel to see the familiar black haired, green eyed boy standing in front of me.

"Sosuke?" I had to look up at him since he had grown so much since the last time I saw him. He gave me a soft smile as he looked down at me. He placed his large hand on the top of my head and gave it a pat.

"How've you been?"

"Where did you come from?" I yelled at him. He immediately retracted his hand from the top of my head and took a slight step backwards.

"Sora I can-"

"Don't think I'm not angry at you too, Sosuke! You didn't tell me you were back! You should've told me! Why didn't you? You're just like Rin!" Sosuke raised up his hands in a surrender position as he stared at me.

"He was at the relay at Iwatobi Returns." Rin said form behind me. I turned on my heel to stare at the red head.

"What? And I didn't see you?"

"Weren't you watching our race?" Rin asked.

"Of course not! I was trying to find the nearest exit, so I could get away from you!"

"Are you going to calm down now?" He asked me. I huffed and looked at Rin. He moved back slightly at my glare before I looked back at Sosuke.

"I hate both of you." I growled.

"Why're you here?" Sosuke asked me.

"Because Rin needed to be slapped for contacting me when I said he's not allowed, but I ended up teaching Rei how to swim." I sighed.

"Am I allowed to call you?" Sosuke asked.

"Of course."

"What? How is that even fair?" Rin yelled as he waved his arms in the air.

"Because he didn't stop sending me mail when he went across the world to go swim!" I yelled at him as I stabbed my index finger into his broad chest.

"You're just trying to punish me!" He yelled at me.

"And what if I am? What're you going to do about it?" I growled at him again. As my jaw clenched his hands balled themselves into fists as we stared at each other. "I'm going home." I turned around and began to stomp away.

"I'll give you a call!" Sosuke yelled after me. I threw up a thumbs-up for him as I pushed my way through the doors.

Rin just aggravated me to no end.

* * *

I sat beside Shin in class and ignored her gaze. I looked out of the window in hopes that Shin would find something else to stare down, but she didn't, so with a sigh I turned to face her and shrugged my shoulders.

"What now?"

"So when were you going to tell me that you've been seeing Rin on the down low?"

"The fact that you know this is extremely creepy, have I ever told you that you're a proper creep because you are." She shook her head at my comment.

"Don't change the subject, why are you seeing him?" She asked me.

"Because he broke my one rule for him and I needed to tell him off." I explained.

"So you went all the way to him to tell him instead of just calling him?"

"Because face-to-face confrontation is more intimidating."

"How?"

"Why does it even matter, Shin? You're the one who wanted me to go see him for the longest time anyways."

"Don't change the subject."

"I think that's what we need to talk about." She glared at me before turning her head and facing the front of the class. I shook my head as I turned to look at our teacher and ready my pencil to take my notes.

* * *

"Shin! Shin! Shin!" I grabbed onto her wrist and turned her to face me, but she just pulled her wrist out of my grasp. "What's wrong with you?"

"It's nothing." She answered.

"Nothing? That's coming from the girl who never stops talking. What's gotten you so mad?" She waited a few seconds before taking in a deep breath and finally making eye contact with me.

"I just…I'm frustrated."

"Why?"

"Because…of course I want you to see Rin and be friends with him again, but…"

"But…" I encouraged her to continue with her thought process.

"But I'm mad at him too."

"Huh?"

"He put you through so much pain, Sora. I know you thought you hid it well, but I noticed it all the time and it hurt me so much to see my best friend in so much pain, so I'm not his biggest fan."

"Shin…"

"But I want you to see him and talk to him properly. I know you need to – it'll be good for you to get all those things off your chest, but I swear, if he hurts you one more time, I will personally ring his neck." She threatened. I smiled and wrapped my arms around her in a big hug.

"Thank you, Shin. You really are the best."


	9. Chapter 9

"You should be nicer to Rin." The sound of Sosuke's voice rang through my phone as I took a break from running.

"Why?"

"Because he misses you and he cries at night?" He made a terrible joke that made me sigh.

"No he doesn't."

"That still doesn't change the fact that he's sorry for what he did."

"Sosuke, I have to do this my own way."

"Okay, but don't push him away for too long because he might just give up, Kei."

"I know."

* * *

Running was always my escape from life. I could listen to some music and run for hours. I would constantly run around my town and just completely lose myself. If I was mad I would run until I felt my legs give way and I would lie on the ground for as long as it took until I could stand again. I know that isn't the best way for me to get out my anger, but it was the only way I knew how.

Just like now I was getting out my frustrations. I was figuring out how I felt about Rin. Shin wants me to talk to him again, but she doesn't completely trust him. Sosuke wanted me to talk to Rin again because he says he misses me. Rin wanted to talk to me because I'm one of his closest friends. But what did I want? What did I really want?

I wanted Rin in my life. I wanted him to be a part of me, but I also wanted him to suffer, but hadn't he suffered enough? Was I being to hard on him? Was I punishing myself in some kind of a way for not letting him back into my life? What was I doing? Why was I doing this?

What do I really want?

* * *

"Rin?!" I was surprised to see the scarlet haired boy sitting at my kitchen table. He smiled at me as I continued to stare at him.

"Sora, stop staring! That's rude!" My mother scolded me.

"Sorry, it's just…why are you here?" I asked him.

"I thought I should come and see your mother since it's been so long." He smiled at the woman across from him and she squealed. My mother had always been one of his biggest fans. "Also, I haven't even talked to Daichi and Daiki!" At the sound of one of my older brothers name my mother and I both froze.

"Daiki is at university right now." My mother told him.

"Is he? Does he still want to become a doctor?"

"Yes, so he's working very hard."

"And what about Daichi?"

"He's-"

"He's dead." I said with my head hung low. You could feel how the air changed around us. I could feel Rin staring at me with wide eyes since he didn't know of the news. I clenched my fists before turning around and running out of the house.

* * *

"Sora…" I looked up from my spot on the hill. It was the same hill I would constantly run up just to get to the top. I just enjoyed being higher up and this is where I could do it.

"What do you want, Rin?" He sat down next to me as he looked forward as well.

"I didn't know."

"How would you? I never told you."

"Why? I could've helped. I could've been there for you."

"We hadn't talked for years and I didn't want to just call you and say that my brother had died in a car accident and that I don't know what to do anymore!" I yelled. I was so frustrated with everything and bringing my older brother back up into the conversation didn't help.

"I'm sorry." I looked at Rin to see him looking down. "If I had let you in then you would've felt comfortable coming to me when you really needed me."

"Rin…"

"You're right that I was being selfish by not even letting you in on my life and I'm sorry. I should've been here for you. I should've been here for your family." I placed my hand on his shoulder and gave it a squeeze.

"It's okay, Rin."

"I promise that you'll never have to go through anything like that alone ever again." He said to me as he turned his head and looked right into my eyes. "I will always be here for you form now on, okay? I'll never leave your side. You'll always have me." I saw small tears begin to well up in his eyes and I felt my heart begin to break. I shook my head as I spoke,

"No, I'm sorry. I should be the one who's more understanding. Instead, as soon as you came home all I've done is be rude and hate you for what you did to me. I'm the selfish one."

"No you're not selfish at all."

"Yes I am."

"No. You are one of the most caring and selfless people I know, so don't you ever say that."

"Rin!" I began to cry as I hugged one of my best friends. So many emotions hit me at once and I didn't know what came over me. I wrapped my arms tightly around Rin and began to cry. All the tears that had bottled up inside of me came cascading down my face as I mourned the loss of my brother and as I mourned the loss of my friendship with Rin.


	10. Chapter 10

I walked to the familiar place after school. I wanted to see him and ask him some questions about what I was thinking and feeling. As I arrived at our family grave I saw the familiar Samezuka jacket.

"What're you doing here, Rin?" I asked the scarlet haired boy.

"I thought I would come and pay my respects." He answered. I placed the flowers I brought for the grave in front and left my brother a small prayer.

"Thank you for coming." I told him.

"Don't worry about it." He said. We stood in silence as we looked at the gravestone. I could feel my older brothers presence as I stood beside Rin.

"He always liked you, you know?" I could feel Rin turn his head to look at me with a confused face. "He was the only one who kept telling me not to be angry at you because you might be going through something that I don't know, but then I would always yell and freak out and say that he didn't know anything." I began to laugh at my usual exchanges with my older brother.

"You still yell like that." Rin joked with me.

"Ya I do, but he wouldn't have me any other way." The silence came over us again for a few seconds. "You know, the day he died he had called me and told me that I should forgive you for everything. I never understood why he pushed me so hard to always forgive you, but he did. Then he randomly told me how much he loved me." I started to laugh again. "For someone who never showed how much he cared he always had a soft spot for me." As I regained my composure I continued with my story, "Anyways, he told me how much he loved me and was proud of everything I had accomplished. I guess I'm lucky – the last words I got to say to him were how much I loved him."

"You are lucky." I looked towards Rin to see him looking at me. "Many people would die for that chance to tell someone they loved them. I know I would give up anything just to tell my dad one more time how much I loved him, but I know that he knows that I will always be his biggest fan."

"I'm sure your dad always knew that you were his biggest fan." I said to my best friend.

"Thanks." I turned around and was ready to walk away, but I was stopped when Rin said something, "Sora, would you come to prefectural tomorrow?"

"Why?"

"Because it would be nice if I could have some support from you too."

"I'll see."

* * *

I walked on the top of the bleachers and had a look around. It took me all morning to actually decide if I was going to come to watch Rin swim or not. I continuously debated on whether this was a good idea or not, but I thought that I should try and not hold a grudge against him anymore and I should try to rebuild this friendship. I saw the Samezuka swim team all sitting in a giant mob and I saw the familiar chestnut coloured hair.

"Hey, Sosuke." He looked over his shoulder and was surprised that I had come.

"Rin said you might come, but I put money that you wouldn't." I sat down beside him and nudged his shoulder.

"I think you two have a betting problem." I joked.

"Well, you did come at a good time because Rin's going to race soon."

"Really? Good! At least I didn't miss his race." I smiled at him and as soon as I muttered those words the scarlet haired boy walked out to the platform. I watched him closely as he stood off to the side. He looked up and saw me sitting in the stands. I gave him a small wave and smile as he gave me his trademark smirk and waved back before getting onto his platform. The rest of the Samezuka team all turned around to see who he was waving and I they all stared at me with confused faces.

"Ready…Go!" I quickly looked at the race and saw Rin swim against one of his closest friends, Haruka Nanase. I was thoroughly impressed and surprised to see how to two boys swam with such speed that no one else could ever catch up to them. Everyone cheered for their swimmer, but I didn't listen to any of it. I was completely mesmerized by how aggressive Rin's swimming has become and how badly he wanted to pass the prelims.

"0.02 seconds difference?!" I nearly shrieked as I saw the time. Rin had lost by a simple 0.02 second difference. In my head that didn't make any sense! How could that even be possible? "He's so fast now!" I cheered as I looked at Sosuke.

"He's always been fast, but he shouldn't have lost." He said as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Oh Sosuke, it's only 0.02 seconds! It was so close! I'm impressed, aren't you?" He didn't answer my question. He only looked at his best friend. I shrugged my shoulders and turned back to see Haruka and Rin talking before they left to go shower.

* * *

"Thank you for coming." Rin said to me as I stood in front of him. I smiled up at him and shook my head.

"It was nothing! I surprisingly enjoyed myself."

"We have the relay tomorrow, so would you like to come and watch that too?" Rin began to awkwardly rub the back of his neck as he avoided eye contact with me.

"Sure, but only if you come to my track and field meet this weekend." I told him. He managed to put on a giant grin as he looked at me.

"Of course!"

"Rin-senpai!" I looked passed him to see a short boy with silver hair run towards us.

"Ai, what's up?" He asked the silver haired boy.

"We wanted to know when we were going." He stated.

"In fifteen minutes."

"Hi, I'm Sora Koyama." I introduced myself to one of Rin's teammates. He looked at me with a surprised look before bowing respectfully.

"H-Hello, Koyama-san." He stuttered out of nervousness.

"Ugh that sounds so formal!" I complained. "Please, use my first name."

"O-Okay. Are you a friend of Rin-senpai?" He asked me. I nodded my head.

"Sadly, we've known each other since we were like…five?"

"I think it was even before then." Rin tried to think back to when we first met, but that was the problem, we didn't remember a time when we weren't a part of the others life.

"I hope Rin isn't too hard on you guys." I said to Ai.

"Rin-senpai is the best! I aspire to be him one day!" He looked at his captain with such admiration that it made me smile.

"I think you're perfect just the way you are!" He blushed as he smiled at me.

"Thank you!"

"Ai, can you go tell the others to get ready for us to leave?" Rin asked.

"Yes!" Ai then bowed and said his goodbyes before turning around and leaving.

"Sorry about that." Rin apologized for our conversation being interrupted.

"Don't, I think he's absolutely adorable." I squealed because he was so cute that I could pinch his cheeks.

"So will I see you tomorrow?" He asked.

"I will honestly have to see because I do need to practice for my own meet this weekend." I could see the smallest bit of sadness flicker across his face as he heard my words.

"Well, I will come to your meet this weekend."

"Really?"

"It's the least I can do."

"Thank you, Rin."


	11. Chapter 11

I was in position and waited to hear the familiar gun sound. I felt my feet begin to carry me away from the rest of the runners. I quickly pulled up to the front as I ran around the track. The excitement in my chest continued to build as I ran faster and faster towards the finish line.

"Sora!" I heard the familiar voice and that's when I felt my smile come across my face as I mustered up the last bit of energy I had to reach the finish line and win our meet.

* * *

"I can't believe you came!" I was excited to see Rin and Sosuke standing in front of me. Sosuke had his hands in his pockets as he gave me a nod. Rin had a giant grin on his face as he ruffled up my hair.

"You did great!" He said.

"It's a good thing you won." Sosuke said.

"What? Why?"

"Because that means you're the best." He simple put. I paused for a second before laughing at what he just said. The two boys stared at me with a confused look.

"Sora!" I turned around to see my best friend, Shin, run up to me. "You were amazing!" She cheered as she threw her arms around me and gave me a tight hug. I laughed as I caught my best friend.

"Thank you!" When she took a step away from me she looked passed me and had a confused look on her face.

"Oh, Shin! This is Rin and Sosuke. Souke, Rin, this is Shin!" I introduced the three individuals to each other. They all bowed respectfully before Shin went straight up to Rin.

"You've made Sora very happy the past few days-"

"Shin!"

"But, don't hurt my best friend again, okay?" She threatened my best friend as I slapped my forehead. We both knew that she was the softest person I have ever met and whenever anything went wrong I was the one that needed to handle it.

"I promise that I'll never hurt her again." He seriously answered her threat. She stared at him for a few more seconds before smiling and nodding her head.

"Why is no one mad at me for disappearing?" Sosuke wondered.

"Because you didn't completely disappear from me." I pointed out.

"Do you want me to get mad at you too?" Shin asked him.

"No."

* * *

"I'm sorry I couldn't come to your relay. I had to practice." I apologized for my absence.

"It's okay. We won." Rin told me.

"Really? That's great! So does that mean you guys are going to Regionals?" I asked the two swimmers in front of me.

"Ya, so you can make it up to us by showing up there and cheering." Rin excitedly said.

"You probably wouldn't even notice if I was there or not." I mumbled.

"You're the loudest person there, so we'd definitely notice." Sosuke teased me.

"Hey! One of us has to be!" I yelled and just proved his point at the same time. The two started to laugh before I joined in. As the laughter calmed down I wiped away the tears that gathered at the corner of my eyes. "I haven't laughed like that in a while."

"That's because we're the best trio out there." Rin pointed out.

* * *

"It kind of sucks that Sosuke had to leave so suddenly." I said as Rin and I continued to walk around the mall together. After every race I always spoiled myself and bought one new top for myself, so Rin came with me to do so, but Sosuke ran away.

"I think once he heard you wanted to go to the mall he knew he had to leave." Rin teased me.

"No! I'm not as bad as Gou!"

"The two of you are terrible to go shopping with." He said to me.

"I wasn't the one that kept us in the mall for three hours to buy a present for one person." I reminded Rin of something that Gou made us do when we were younger. He laughed at the memory of his sister not allowing us to leave her to do our own thing. When the laughter died down a comfortable silence fell upon us or, so I thought.

"I missed this." Rin said.

"Please don't." I didn't want him to start talking about this now. I was thoroughly enjoying what we were doing right now.

"Sora." Rin stopped walking and I turned around to look at him. He stood tall in front of him with a look of determination in his eyes.

"What is it?" I asked him.

"I'm sorry!" Rin bent forward and gave me a ninety-degree bow. I was completely confused at his actions that I began to stutter my words. People around us were staring at us with odd expressions and we were attracting unnecessary attention.

"C-Can y-you stop that? P-people are l-looking." My nerves began to reek havoc on my speech as I practically begged Rin to stand up straight again.

"I know that you still haven't forgiven me. I understand why you haven't, but I promise you," Rin stood back up and continued to look at me with a face of determination. "I will make it up to you. I will show you how much you mean to me." After his declaration of his goal, I nodded my head and turned on my heel.

"That's good and all, but can we get going? My shirt awaits."


End file.
